Canada offers a better model on religious freedom

Crux, 30 June 2017

Tolerance for religious minorities was written into the very establishment of Canada, more than a century before the country was established in 1867. Today, religious liberty and religious pluralism are under siege the world over. The 150 years – and more – of the Canadian experience have much to offer.

This past week the American supreme court ruled that if the government provides money to make school playgrounds safer, it cannot exclude religious schools from receiving those grants simply because they are religious.

That’s a violation of religious liberty, the court decided.

It would also be common sense in almost any other democracy, but in the United States it counts as something of a historic judgement requiring multiple years of litigation winding its way to the highest court.